The present invention relates in general to the field of containers for the containment of beverages and the like. More particularly, the present invention relates to an apparatus for the manufacture of metal container closures and parts thereof which are provided with promotional material of the game type, in which a player of the game must purchase the product in order to play the game.
In recent years, it has become increasingly popular in promoting the sale of beverages for bottlers and canners to employ promotional indicia on the inside or under surface of bottle caps and metal container closures. It is also known to apply promotional indicia on the undersurface of opening tabs of the retained type such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,967,752--Cudzik. While some promotional indicia may be applied to the aforementioned items by means of lithography, the application of promotional indicia to the undersurface of easy opening tabs of the type disclosed in the aforementioned Cudzik patent is preferably done by a metal stamping or embossing operation.
In the promotional techniques now commonly employed by bottlers and canners, promotional indicia located on container closures and easy opening tabs therefor have been utilized for games and contests. The promotional indicia situated upon a container closure or easy opening tab signifies to a consumer that he has won a prize, the value of which falls into one of a group of categories. The monetary value of prizes in each category differs from the value of prizes in the remaining categories. Thus, the particular indicia imprinted upon a consumer's closure or easy opening tab determines not only the category of prize won, but also is value.
As migh be expected, it is particularly important to bottlers and canners that in a given sales campaign the number of prizes awarded in any given category be accurately controlled. Consequently, it is likewise extremely important to a bottler or canner that the distribution of differing types of promotional indicia signifying the various categories of prizes also be accurately controlled. For example, in one promotional contest technique now employed, a single star or cluster of stars imprinted upon a container closure or easy opening tab signifies to a given consumer that a prize in one of a group of categories has been won. Thus, a closure having but a single star may be redeemed for a prize in a first category having a low monetary value. A group of two stars in a cluster, however, may signify that a prize has been won in a second category having a higher value. Three stars signifies a still higher valued prize, and so on. As might be expected, in each group of container closures manufactured and sold the odds of consumers receiving closures having but a single star will be significatly higher than the odds of receiving closures having a cluster of two stars imprinted thereon. The odds of consumers receiving closures having two stars imprinted thereon are greater than the odds of receiving closures with three or more stars, and so on. It is essential to bottlers and canners that these odds be precisely controlled. It also goes without saying that errors occurring in imprinting indicia on such closures or easy opening tabs therefor may be extremely costly to bottlers and canners.
In the past, to insure that such errors did not occur, at least some manufacturers of closures or tabs therefor, where promotional indicia were applied by metal stamping operations, controlled the odds by hand. Thus, the required number of closures bearing indicia signifying prizes in the highest valued categories were made first. Next, the required number of closures having indicia in the lower valued categories were made and subsequently all closures were mixed randomly by hand for sale. The possibilities for error in such a system are great.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for producing container closures and/or easy opening tabs therefor which eliminates the aforementioned disadvantages.
Specifically, it is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for producing container closures and/or tabs therefor having indicia thereon in a manner wherein the indicia are applied randomly one from another, yet according to a preselected odds distribution.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide such an apparatus in part of a system for applying indicia automatically to container closure stock.
Still further it is an object of the present invention to provide such a system wherein the odds may be precisely and accurately controlled.